Mom's visit was 'important'

John Garcia Jr.

04/21/2014

A mother's voice is an ever-important one in recruiting, so getting her to see schools high on a prospect's list is a must. That is exactly what four-star defensive end Kyle Phillips was able to do at Alabama this weekend, and he called it "big."

Kyle Phillips has been to Tuscaloosa several times in the past, and has held a verbal scholarship offer from Alabama since late October.

So his return trip for A-Day this past weekend wasn't about him experiencing many new things on campus, it was more about his mother. She made her initial trip to campus with him this time around.

"She liked it," he said. "Just the whole setup. She loved the facilities and pretty much everything."

In between talks with Nick Saban, other recruits and taking in the campus, Phillips said the best part of the day was the fact that mom was able to make the trip with him.

"Just getting my mom on campus,"he said. "It's big because she needs to know where I will be for the next four or five years if I decide to go (to Alabama).

"It was important for her to see the people I will be with, also."

Beyond his mother, the four-star defensive end out of Nashville (Tenn.) Hillsboro High got his own time with Saban and company as well. The two have done so several times of late.

"He was just asking me how I was doing and things like that," he said. "We really don't talk formally. It was no need to really sit down and talk to him like that again, because I've talked to him multiple times, so it was cool.

"I talked to Coach [Kevin] Steele mostly. He's a cool guy, I like him a lot. They like me as a JACK linebacker, it's like a defensive end and outside linebacker, so he was telling me about the whole setup and the environment there. I like it."

Alabama remains high on Phillips' list, though he wouldn't reveal how high considering he put out a top 10 earlier in April. Beyond the recruitment he received on campus from coaches, the 6-foot-4, 245 pounder was impressed with the A-Day game itself.

"It was a good experience to see everything," he said. "They have lots of good players, so it was nice to see all of them. I liked the mid-year corner (Tony Brown) that just came in. To be a mid-year freshman he held his own pretty good this year.

"The running backs are going to be really good this year, too. All three (T.J. Yeldon, Kenyan Drake, Derrick Henry) are returning and I just think they are going to dominate this year."

Phillips is considered the No. 17 defensive end prospect on Scout.com at this point. He doesn't have a concrete timetable for a decision, but hasn't ruled out pulling the trigger this summer.

Discuss Phillips' A-Day visit, his recruitment and much more within the premium member forum HERE.